Editorial: Praise to CSUF

2012-12-18 12:27:06

Technology, when used effectively, saves lives and helps law enforcement. Such may have been the case at Cal State Fullerton on Wednesday, when potentially dangerous suspects made their way onto the college campus and safety officials employed social media, text messaging and other technology to ensure the safety of students, faculty, staff and others in the university community.

Five armed men who allegedly robbed a jewelry store in Moreno Valley and shot a clerk fled in a Lexus toward Orange County, according to Register reports.

After crashing the Lexus across the street from Cal State Fullerton, police believed at least one of the suspects fled onto the campus. Three of the suspects were caught and arrested with two still at-large.

Good planning on the administration's part may have helped avert an even greater disaster when text message alerts, like the following, went flying through cyberspace to inform students and faculty of the campus search and evacuation:

"CSUF Update: Police are continuing to search. If you are on campus, remain calm and sheltered in place, and we will keep updating you as soon as possible."

Fortunately, campus shootings are uncommon but Cal State Fullerton has endured some heart-wrenching losses over the years. The most famous of which was when custodian Edward Charles Allaway fatally shot seven California State University employees and wounded two more on July 12, 1976. This mass murder was only superceded in O.C. history by the infamous Salon Meritage shooting in October, 2011. On Oct. 13, 1984, Physics professor Edward Cooperman, was shot and killed by a former student of his, 21-year-old Minh Van Lam.

CSUF's administration, campus safety and various police agencies — including the Fullerton Police department and the California Highway Patrol — deserve praise for the way in which they deployed technology to help protect the public.